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Adapting To Uncertainty: Effects Of Environmental Instability On Zebrafish Behaviour, Britney Sekulovski

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This thesis addresses how animals cope with unpredictability by testing how environmental stability changes the behaviour of zebrafish (Danio rerio) in two complementary experiments. In Experiment 1, fish lived for three months in either a Dynamic environment (water temperature, feeding times, habitat complexity, group size, and membership fluctuated) or a Stable environment (all factors constant). Across seven behavioural assays, measuring individual behavioural differences, collective movement, social memory, and information use, Dynamic condition fish were found to be more sensitive to social cues and more likely to conform to recent social information, independent of the quality of the information …

Injury To Insight: Exploring The Influence Of Media On Acl Rehabilitation Experiences Of Female Soccer Players, Chynna Ho-Young Cadogan, Jill Tracey

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Participation in soccer inherently carries a risk of injury, with female athletes facing a significantly higher susceptibility to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries (Campbell et al., 2014; Le et al., 2025; Silvers-Granelli, 2021). The increasing participation in women’s soccer, coupled with the growing demand for its consumption through spectatorship, has contributed to a rise in ACL injuries, and increase in media coverage on this phenomenon (Parsons et al., 2021). Understanding how media narratives surrounding ACL injuries and recovery may influence rehabilitation experiences can educate coaches, mental performance consultants, athletic therapists, and female soccer players to better understand and navigate ACL …

Dual Language Learner Status In Relation To Cortisol For Children In Head Start Preschool, Keala Bratsch

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Early childhood education (ECE) has well documented school readiness benefits, especially for children facing economic hardship. Yet preschool context poses challenges that are associated with elevated stress levels and potential long-term tax on physiological systems that respond to stress. The present study examined dual language learner (DLL) status in relation to levels of the stress hormone cortisol among low-income children attending Head Start Preschool programs. Participants included 207 children ages 3- 5 years who attended preschool in 2021-22 (60.9% attending a dual-language learning school, 39.1% attending an English-instruction-only preschool; all participants meeting the criteria for low-income), and their parents or …

The Biology Of Soulmates: Are We Wired For Connection?, Christiane Betfarhad

Scientific Kenyon: The Neuroscience Edition

No abstract provided.

Your Brain's Favorite Cheat Code: The Neuroscience Of Self-Affirmation, Maeve Mclaughlin

Scientific Kenyon: The Neuroscience Edition

No abstract provided.

Kenyon College Neuroscience Department Faculty And Staff

Scientific Kenyon: The Neuroscience Edition

No abstract provided.

A Pragmatic Guide To Data Integration For Pediatric Researchers: The Nuts And Bolts Of Mixed Methods Analysis, Kathleen A Knafl, Janet A Deatrick, Veronica M Swallow, Yelena P Wu, Debbe Thompson

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Objective: To provide pragmatic guidance on data analysis, integration, and reporting guidance for investigators new to mixed methods research.

Methods: Three core mixed methods designs (convergent, explanatory sequential, and exploratory sequential) are described. Key decision points related to data integration-specifying intent, data selection, data preparation, integration strategies, use of analysis software, reporting-are explained, including comparison of decision points across the different mixed methods designs.

Results: Recommendations for addressing key decisions during analysis are provided and supported with published examples from mixed methods studies focused on pediatric populations.

Conclusions: Integration of qualitative and quantitative data is the defining characteristic of mixed …

Photovoice Exploration Of Afghan Refugee Background Women's Food-Related Well-Being, Eileen C. Lindemann

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

More than 117,000 Afghans have been relocated to the United States following the U.S. military withdrawal in August 2021. Research indicates that Afghan refugees resettled in the U.S. are at increased risk of psychological distress, with Afghan women particularly susceptible compared with Afghan men, and diet-related chronic disease. However, research also shows that traditional food and eating customs foster cultural identity, social support, integration, and well-being. The purpose of this study was to collaboratively explore the food-related well-being and daily life contexts of resettled refugee participants through the photovoice method, a participatory research strategy in which participants photograph aspects of …

Characterization Of The Effects Of Atp On Primary Brainstem Glial Cells, Donovan J. Aardema Faigh

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Migraine and temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) are debilitating orofacial pain disorders that negatively impact one’s quality of life. These disorders are characterized by elevated levels of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and activation of central nervous system glial cells that promote and maintain central sensitization and enhance pain signaling in response to inflammatory stimuli. The goal of my study was to characterize the effects of the pro-inflammatory signaling molecule adenosine triphosphate (ATP) on intracellular calcium levels, mRNA levels, and protein expression in astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes to better understand the role of ATP in promoting central sensitization. To address this goal, primary …

Investigating The Role Of Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine For Cancer Symptom Management In Older Adults: A Rapid Review, Isabelle C. Karshner

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Background: Patients with cancer often experience symptoms related to disease, complications, and treatment. One potential method of alleviating these symptoms is traditional Chinese herbal medications (TCHM). This rapid review explores the role of traditional Chinese herbal medications in treating cancer-related symptoms in older adults.

Purpose: The purpose of this rapid review is to gain and provide a better understanding of the effects of TCHM on cancer-symptom management in the older adult population. This review explores the association between TCHM and effects on cancer symptoms in older adults, including interactions, toxicity, and signs/symptoms of TCHM use that may be useful information …

Comorbid Psychosis In The General Population, Mariam Sankoh

Theses and Dissertations

Psychosis is a complex psychiatric phenotype characterized by substantial heterogeneity in symptom presentation, psychosis diagnosis, comorbidity patterns, and genetic architecture across diverse populations in the general population. Despite advances in psychiatric epidemiology and genomics, important gaps remain in understanding how psychosis symptoms and psychosis-related diagnoses manifest across racial and ethnic groups and how evolutionary genomic factors may contribute to disease risk and cross-ancestry genetic prediction. This dissertation, Characterizing Comorbidity in Psychosis in the General Population, integrates epidemiological, psychometric, and evolutionary genetic approaches to examine psychosis across diverse populations.

Aim 1 examined racial and ethnic differences in psychosis comorbidity patterns …

24-H Circadian Rest-Activity Rhythms And Physical Frailty In Older Adults: A Biopsychosocial Perspective On Sex Differences And Social Capital, Jisu Kim

Theses and Dissertations

Physical frailty is a prevalent geriatric syndrome characterized by age-related decline across multiple physiological systems. Physical frailty is associated with an elevated risk of adverse health outcomes, including chronic disease progression and all-cause mortality, representing a significant and growing public health concern. Disrupted circadian rest-activity rhythms (RARs) are increasingly recognized as clinically meaningful markers of physical frailty in older adults. However, the extent to which biological sex and social determinants of health (SDoH), particularly social capital, contribute to or modify the associations between RARs and physical frailty remains underexplored.

Therefore, this dissertation summarizes the existing literature on age-related changes in …

Self-Movement Cue Ability As A Potential Moderator For The Relationship Between Binge Drinking And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms, Dominoe Anna Jones

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) has been found to co-occur in a range of 30% to 50% of individuals diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder PTSD. The current study aimed to assess whether this high comorbidity could be partially explained through a shared association with poorer function and reduced volume in the hippocampus. Self-movement cue processing, a behavioral ability previously shown to be associated with hippocampal functioning, was measured through a dead reckoning task (DRT) to test this hypothesis. The current study failed to replicate previous findings between alcohol use and DRT and alcohol use and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). Performance on …

An Exploratory Analysis Of The Role Of Sex In Load Carriage, Rachel E. Perez, Dustin R. Slivka, Brent C. Ruby

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Axially loaded weight may impose a metabolic demand equivalent to that of fat mass (FM) during load carriage. Males (M) typically have a lower body fat percentage than females (F), resulting in metabolic demand differences during load carriage that may be mitigated by accounting for FM in pack loads. PURPOSE: To determine whether normalizing pack load to FM equalizes metabolic cost across sexes during load carriage. METHODS: Twenty-eight participants (14M, 23 ± 5 y, 1.81 ± 0.07 m, 78.7 ± 10.0 kg, 12.7 ± 5.4% body fat, VO₂peak 4.18 ± 0.54 L·min^-1; 14F, 22 ± 4 …

Predicting Tilt In Esports: A Psychophysiological Approach To Understanding Player Emotional Regulation, Nathan Rhea

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Emotional regulation and stress management are important to both casual and competitive esports players. When players become dysregulated, they experience a phenomenon known as “tilt” within the gaming community, where they often lose control of their emotions and their performance declines. This study aimed to investigate whether a psychophysiological variable in heart rate variability could predict tilt in college-age esports players. Additionally, the relationship between heart rate variability and emotions predicted by the Tiltometer system with gameplay performance and winning or losing was tested.

This study used a quantitative correlational research design. Participants for this study were college-age players (N=23) …

The Importance Of Hippotherapy: Improving The Lives Of The Disabled Through Alternative Therapy, Jennifer N. Stapleton

UROP Posters

For centuries, horses have been suggested as “healers” and “helpers,” although it wasn’t until the 1900s that horseback riding was scientifically proven as a treatment and rehabilitation method. The exploitation of hippotherapy, the implementation of the three-dimensional pelvic movement stimulated by the oscillation and gait of the horse to combat symptoms of diseases and disorders, has since become a flourishing field of study, but one that is often overlooked. Benefits of hippotherapy often include increased motor neuron function, facilitating proper anatomical alignment, and reducing spasticity. This research analyzes the diverse and dynamic nature of treatment that hippotherapy facilitates, exploring the …

Patterns Of Ovarian And Gonadotropin Hormones In Emerging Adult Oral Contraceptive Users, Summer Mcormond

UROP Posters

Oral contraceptives (OCs) are often initiated during adolescence and emerging adulthood, a period of continued maturation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal (HPG) axis. Because hormonal exposure during this window may shape emotional, biological, and reproductive outcomes, it is important to understand the specific formulations young women take and the hormonal profiles these formulations produce. This study characterizes OC formulation features and measured hormone levels in young adult OC users (n = 30).

Ethinyl estradiol (EE) doses ranged from 0.01–0.035 mg (mean = 0.022 mg), with 70% using ≤0.02 mg. Pill regimens included 21/7 packs (83%), 24/4 packs (10%), and 84/7 regimens (3%). …

Genomic Determinants Of Appetite Regulation And Their Role In Obesity Risk, Timothy J. Renier

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Over 40% of US adults and 20% of children live with obesity. It is related to increased risks of diseases including type II diabetes and cancer, is a source of harmful stigma, and impairs child development. Appetitive traits describing patterns of food approach and avoidance behaviors may serve as windows into the underlying pathophysiology of obesity. As both obesity and appetitive traits are heritable, common genetic drivers of obesity may lead to phenotypic obesity through appetitive traits as a disease mechanism. Additionally, GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) have been shown to exert their profound clinical effects in part by modulating appetite. …

Association Between A Lifestyle Medicine Score And Stroke In U.S. Adults With Hyperglycemia: 2007- 2010 Nhanes, Swarnima Naithani

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between glycemic control and cardiovascular disease (CVD) is well- established, however, lifestyle modifications to prevent CVD warrant further investigation. Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between adherence to the six lifestyle medicine pillars promoted by the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and stroke in U.S. adults with hyperglycemia. A lifestyle medicine composite score (LMS) was developed to quantify adherence with the hypothesis that a higher LMS (greater adherence to lifestyle recommendations) correlates with lower odds of stroke in adults with hyperglycemia. Methods: The study sample (n=2,079) included adult (≥ 40 years of age) participants in the …

Dgamlss: An Exact, Distributed Algorithm To Fit Generalized Additive Models For Location, Scale, And Shape For Privacy-Preserving Population Reference Charts, Fengling Hu, Jiayi Tong, Margaret Gardner, Chris Adamson, Sophie Adler, Aaron F. Alexander-Bloch, Evdokia Anagnostou, Kevin M. Anderson, Ariosky Areces-Gonzalez, John Blangero

Human Genetics Publications

Motivation There is growing interest in estimating population reference ranges across age and sex to better identify atypical clinically-relevant measurements throughout the lifespan. For this task, the World Health Organization recommends using Generalized Additive Models for Location, Scale, and Shape (GAMLSS), which can model non-linear growth trajectories under complex distributions that address the heterogeneity in human populations. Fitting GAMLSS models requires large, generalizable sample sizes, especially for accurate estimation of extreme quantiles, but obtaining such multi-site data can be challenging due to privacy concerns and practical considerations. In settings where patient data cannot be shared, privacy-preserving distributed algorithms for federated …

Summer Research Fellowship Project Descriptions 2026, Clark Science Center's Summer Research Fellows Program

SURF Abstracts (Women in Science)

A summary of research done by Smith College’s 2026 Summer Research Fellowship (SURF) Program participants. Ever since its 1967 start, SURF has been a cornerstone of Smith’s science education. Supervised by faculty mentor-advisors drawn from the Clark Science Center and connected to its eighteen science, mathematics, and engineering departments and programs and associated centers and units. At summer’s end, SURF participants were asked to summarize their research experiences for this publication.

Menstrual Cycle Phase Effects On Alcohol-Impaired Driving Performance And Risk Awareness, Annie K. Griffith

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Growing evidence indicates that risky behavior among women is elevated during the late follicular phase of the menstrual cycle, likely due to increased estradiol levels. Furthermore, alcohol-induced impairment of women’s inhibitory control is significantly greater during the late versus early follicular phase. Consequently, cycle phase may influence outcomes of poor inhibitory control while intoxicated, such as alcohol-impaired driving. Alcohol-impaired driving risk manifests in two ways: risk-taking while driving, and risk awareness regarding the decision to drive. This dissertation tested the hypothesis that alcohol-induced increases in driver risk-taking and decreases in risk awareness would be exacerbated during the late versus early …

Daily Rhythms In Psychosocial Stress, Sleep, And Mood: A Multimethod Approach To Transdiagnostic Psychopathology Risk And Intervention, Gabriel Gilmore

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Rhythms are central to nearly every core physiological and psychological process and have profound influences on overall health and well-being, particularly in the context of mood disorders. This dissertation emphasizes a rhythm-centered framework for understanding transdiagnostic psychopathology, proposing that the temporal organization of psychosocial stress, sleep, and mood provides crucial information for the development and treatment of mood disorder symptomology. Current literature relies primarily on mean symptom levels, overlooking day-to-day patterns in psychosocial experiences. To address this key methodological gap, three studies are examined. Study 1 develops and validates the Psychosocial Stress Regularity Measure (PSRM), a brief single-item measure of …

Orexin Receptor Modulation In Amygdalar Stress Circuitry Differentiates Resilient And Vulnerable Phenotypes, Megan Marie John

Dissertations and Theses

Social stress is important for evaluating threats and resource opportunities, however, chronic exposure initiates the onset of psychological disorders, such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Stress responsiveness varies between individuals and sexes, resulting in disproportionate diagnoses and ineffective treatment outcomes. Enhancing therapeutic efficacy requires understanding of stress responsivity, phenotype development, and neurocircuitry modifications. Key contributors to stress responsiveness, such as threat of aggression and motivational initiation, influence the development of resilient or vulnerable phenotypes through behavioral and molecular adaptations to stress-related neurocircuitry. The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is a brain region associated with fear learning and integrates stress …

Varied Environmental Enrichment Schedules Differentially Affect Behavioral Performance, Davis Aschemann

Research Honors

Cognitive decline is a widespread phenomenon affecting a significant proportion of older adults. The mechanisms that cause cognitive decline are still being investigated, with recent evidence indicating that senescent cells are a primary cause of neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration. Environmental enrichment has been linked with the potential curbing and reversal of cognitive decline, specifically the restoration of immune cell function and improved neuroplasticity. Despite the amount of research showing the beneficial effects of environmental enrichment for cognitive decline, paradigms for environmental enrichment are heterogeneous across the literature. A primary factor that differs across studies is the duration of administration of environmental …

Functional, Pharmacogenomic, And Immune Landscapes Of Long Non-Coding Rnas In Cancer, Runhao Wang, Mei Luo, Yuan Liu, Jingwen Yang, Yamei Chen, Chengxuan Chen, Lifei Ma, Stephanie Ding, James Wengler, Yong Zang, Bora Lim, Wenbo Li, Liuqing Yang, Chunru Lin, Lixia Diao, Leng Han

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are emerging as key regulators in cancer, with significant potential as diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic targets. Here, this work systematically analyzes lncRNA associations with targeted therapies and immunotherapies across 33 cancer types using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and real-world datasets. This work identifies 53,173 lncRNA-pathway associations, millions of lncRNA-drug response associations (via CancerRxTissue and VAEN), and extensive correlations with immune checkpoints and infiltration. This work further identifies 69 lncRNAs associated with immunotherapy response and 2,611 differentially expressed lncRNAs between low and high objective response rate (ORR) groups. Additionally, two lncRNAs are correlated with immune-related adverse …

Preliminary Examination Of Orexin Receptor Antagonism With Suvorexant In Individuals With Methamphetamine Use Disorder: A Case Series Study, Heather Webber, Jessica Badawi, Douglas Calvillo, Jin Yoon, Michael Weaver, Scott Lane, Joy Schmitz

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Preclinical Ischemic Stroke Multicenter Trials (Prism) Collective Statement: Opportunities, Challenges, And Recommendations For A New Era, Cenk Ayata, Philip M Bath, Anna M Planas, Stuart M Allan, Johannes Boltze, Ryan P Cabeen, Claire L Gibson, Marilyn J Cipolla, Marcio A Diniz, Stefano Fumagalli, Fahmeed Hyder, Raymond C Koehler, Arthur Liesz, Sarah K Mccann, Tim Magnus, Louise D Mccullough, Emily S Sena, Simone Beretta, Jaroslaw Aronowski, Francesca Bosetti, Clinton B Wright, Patrick D Lyden, Lauren H Sansing

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Preclinical stroke research faces a critical translational gap, with animal studies failing to reliably predict clinical efficacy. To address this, the field is moving toward rigorous, multicenter preclinical randomized controlled trials (mpRCTs) that mimic phase 3 clinical trials in several key components. This collective statement, derived from experts involved in mpRCTs, outlines considerations for designing and executing such trials. mpRCTs offer advantages such as increased sample sizes, robust statistical design, incorporation of heterogeneity, and standardized protocols, but they face challenges in finding the right balance between standardization and heterogeneity, appropriate stroke model selection, and outcome measures, as well as the …

Brief Therapy Dog Interactions May Increase Self-Efficacy And Lower Perceived Stress And Cortisol In High School Students: A Preliminary Study, Dawn Melzer, Deirdre Yeater, Madison Derubis, Christiana Rose Kohlroser, Barbara J. Pierce

Psychology Faculty Publications

The present study examined changes in high schoolers’ perceived stress, general self-efficacy and cortisol levels after a brief interaction with a certified therapy dog. High school students completed self-report measures of perceived stress and general self-efficacy and provided salivary cortisol samples both before and after a 10-min interaction with a certified therapy dog. Following the interaction, students reported reductions in perceived stress scores, exhibited lower salivary cortisol concentrations and demonstrated increases in self-efficacy scores compared to before the interaction. Although higher self-efficacy scores were observed, general self-efficacy is generally regarded as a stable construct; therefore, these findings may reflect a …

Organized Sports-Based Interventions And Motor Outcomes In Children Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review, Kailash Ram, Maeren Hill, Caitlyn Stewart, Kaitlin P. Hardy Md, Sonia Khurana

Rehabilitation Sciences Faculty Publications

Aim

To evaluate the effectiveness of organized sports-based interventions on motor outcomes in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Method

Four databases were searched from inception to November 2025 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized controlled trials (NRCTs) reporting motor outcomes of organized sports-based interventions in children with ASD. Risk of bias was evaluated using ROB-2 (Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool, Version Two) for RCTs and ROBINS-I (Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies - of Interventions) for NRCTs.

Results

Eleven studies (six RCTs, five NRCTs) were included and categorized as martial arts (n = 5), aquatic training (n = …